Trial Information

Locus of Control and Spirituality in Palliative Care Patients

If you are receiving care in the Palliative Care clinic and are eligible to participate, you
will be asked to fill out one-time quality of life surveys, which will take about 40 minutes
to complete. The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy (FACT-G) survey asks
questions about physical and emotional well-being, functional well-being (how much you
participate in and enjoy normal daily activities), and social/family well-being.

This study first collected questionnaires from 100 participants from different racial and
ethnic backgrounds. When the questionnaires were compared, investigators found some
interesting differences between the African American and Caucasian participants. To better
understand these findings, an additional 67 African American patients are needed to compare
the groups.

The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being Scale (FACT-Sp)
asks questions about personal meaning, faith and peace. The Duke University Religion Index
(DUREL) asks questions about religious practices. The Locus of Control (LOC) questionnaire
asks questions about personal internal control, your views on chance, and your views on
power. The Herth Health Scale (HHS) asks questions about hope. The Edmonton Symptom
Assessment System (ESAS) asks questions about symptoms you may be experiencing. The
Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) asks questions about your feelings of
depression and anxiety. The "predetermination" questionnaire asks questions about your
beliefs about your fate.

These eight questionnaires will take about 40 minutes to complete and may be completed at a
later time if you become tired. Information about you will also be collected (such as your
age and gender).

This is an investigational study. About 167 patients will take part in this study. All
will be enrolled at M. D. Anderson.